2-day coastal cruise

[danem]

My girlfriend and I are considering taking a 2 day coastal cruise next month. Can anyone tell me what these 2 days cruises are like? Anything special I should know. We're looking at one on the Dawn Princess.

[calikak]

DH and I and two of our friends did the one northbound on the Dawn this spring. It was a great way to try out the ship and have a quick weekend getaway at a great price (these coastal sailings usually end up being really cheap if you book close to last minute). Don't expect it to be as relaxing as a regular cruise, because it's only 2 nights so you don't get as much of a chance to settle into the ship as you would on a 7-night cruise, but expect the same level of service and quality of food. Also, the casino will be open, and so will the spa, and there'll the same type of activities from the cruise staff (trivia contests, art auction, etc.). On our sailing, traditional dining was pretty empty, I think most people opted for Anytime.

 

If you can afford it, get a minisuite, they're really wonderful on this class of ship. They're similar to the full suites on the Grand-class ships (but without the full suite amenities). It's also great to have a balcony when you're sailing under the Lion's Gate Bridge in Vancouver and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.

[danem]

Thanks for the input! I'm not sure if we're going to be able to go now. I just called Princess and the price they quoted me was almost twice the price they advertised in the e-mail I got. I'm going to hunt around some and see if I can find a better price somewhere else.

[calikak]

If you're looking at the fall one, usually the flash specials start about now. They just had one on the one-night cruise on the Sapphire. You can e-mail at ejs@u.washington.edu if you want info about the pricing we found on that one.

[danem]

Thanks! I called back and got a great price -- the first guy didn't get that I had a promotion. I have a courtesy hold while we finalize plans. I'm very excited.